1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to apparatus for supporting a patient comprising a bed.
2. Background
U.S. Patent Specification No. 4,006,499 discloses a patient's bed having a base frame which supports a central panel for supporting the patient's bottom, a second panel and a third panel for supporting the upper and lower parts, respectively, of the patient's legs and a fourth panel for supporting the patient's back. There are drive means for displacing the panels such that in one configuration their upper surfaces lie in a single horizontal plane and in another configuration adjacent panels are inclined with respect to each other such that the patient is supported in a sitting position with his back and the lower parts of his legs inclined in the same sense to the vertical and the upper parts of his legs horizontal. There is no disclosure of the possibility of using the drive means to assist the patient in leaving the bed other than by causing him to stand upright preparatory to walking.
French Patent Specification No. 949,470 discloses a patient's trolley in which a panel at one end can be lifted, presumably manually, from a horizontal position to an inclined position to raise the patient's head. A side bar of the trolley is constructed to support various accessories which can be slid along it, including a leg support which forms a local widening of the trolley and is designed to support the lower part of one leg of the patient when heis lying on his back with that one leg projecting beyond one side of the trolley proper. The leg support always forms a local widening of the trolley, wherever the leg support is situated, until it is removed entirely from the trolley.
U.S. Patent Specification No. 4,737,997 discloses a method of transferring a patient from a bed to a wheelchair without using electrical or other power other than manual power. starting from the situation where the patient is lying on one of his sides on the bed, a patient support having a seat portion and a back portion is placed on the bed, with the seat portion engaging the patient's bottom and the upper parts of his legs and the back portion engaging the patient's back. Then the patient support is strapped to the patient and the two are rolled over by an assistant until the patient is sitting on the seat portion with the lower parts of his legs dangling over the side of the bed or projecting beyond it. A buggy is then advanced towards the bed, secured to the patient support and backed away from the bed to carry the patient away from the bed. A wheel chair is then moved towards the patient from behind him until the seat portion and the back portion of the patient support are close to the seat and back portions of the wheelchair and the buggy is then disconnected from the patient support and removed, leaving the patient seated on the wheelchair. The operation of rolling the patient over, with the patient support strapped to him, would be difficult, especially in the case of a heavy patient.